


Five Things Harry Potter Learnt About His Older Brother

by judelawslady



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: First Kiss, Getting Together, James and Harry are brothers, M/M, Marauders' Era, alternative universe, mentions of child abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-03
Updated: 2018-04-03
Packaged: 2019-04-17 21:20:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14197917
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/judelawslady/pseuds/judelawslady
Summary: Harry Potter watches as his older brother grows up, and notes just how close his and Sirius’ relationship really is.





	Five Things Harry Potter Learnt About His Older Brother

_ **0.1** _

Harry Potter was seven years old when his older brother, James, went off to Hogwarts for the first time.

He remembers going to King's Cross early in the morning, grumbling and carrying James' bags because they'd been dumped on him in favour of James bouncing through the wall of Platform 9 ¾.

“Be nice, Harry. This will be you in four years and then we'll have Jamie lug around your bags.” Mr. Potter had laughed, shoving his son through the wall and following him in.

Harry just grunted, squashed by the bags that were essentially bigger than him.

When Harry and Fleamont followed Euphemia after the overly excited James, they found him engaged in avid conversation with a tall, skinny, light haired boy.

"Harry, love?" Euphemia called kindly, grabbing the attention of her youngest son. "Go give your brother his bags and let your back rest."

"Thanks, mum!" Harry laughed, making his way towards the two 11-year-olds who stood to the side of the crowds.

"James!" Harry called, almost falling at his brother's feet as he threw the three bags he'd been drowned in on the floor. "Take your things, my back is killing me."

"What a wimp." James teased endearingly, bringing Harry's head under his arm and ruffling his hair.

Harry huffed.

"Oh, yeah!" James remembered, letting go of Harry. "Harry, this is Remus. Remus, this is my brother Harry."

"Nice to meet you!" Harry grinned, his front tooth missing and his green eyes shining behind his glasses.

"You too, little one." Remus laughed, smiling at the small boy.

Shortly after the train was called, and James and Remus left to take a seat on the train. Harry looked through a window and saw as the two older boys sat down by another two in a compartment, and smiled knowing his brother was going to enjoy himself.

This was the day that Harry learnt that he loved Remus John Lupin, as he was the only sane one of James' many friends.

* * *

 

** _0.2_ **

When James came home from his first year at Hogwarts, Harry had just turned eight.

When The Potters went to fetch James, they had gotten there early and stood waiting for the train. Ten minutes later, when Mr. and Mrs. Potter were off talking to some family that they went to school with, an unmistakable messy haired boy with big round glasses stumbled out of the train, with four boys in tow. Harry recognized one of them as Remus.

"Hey, little guy!" James cheered, charging towards Harry and giving him a hug. "How're you been?"

Harry grinned at his brother, told him he'd been doing well, before turning his attention to the other three boys.

Remus greeted him, and Harry smiled at the fact that Remus had remembered him.

"Harry, this is Peter Pettigrew." James introduced him to a chubby blonde boy, who was even shorter than Harry but had a sweet smile on his face. "And this is Sirius Black."

Harry took a good look at Sirius. Taller than James, but shorter than Remus. Neat black hair, stormy grey eyes and a laid back smirk on his lips making him look a lot older than his 12-years-old.

"Nice to meet you." Harry grinned with his boyish charm.

He stood beside James and listened to these four boys talk animatedly, and even an 8-year-old like Harry couldn't help but notice the way James looked at Sirius differently to the other boys.

Harry Potter would later recognize this look as the same one he reserved for Draco Malfoy in years to come.

_Love._

* * *

** _0.3_ **

It was three years later and Harry had just finished his first year at Hogwarts when he noticed a third defining thing about his brother.

It was a spectacular year for him. He'd been sorted into Gryffindor, just like his brother and his three friends (who branded themselves as 'The Marauders', and took pride in driving teachers up the wall), and made permanent friends in Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. He also met a boy named Draco who managed to make him feel something he wouldn't recognize for another five years. 

When — now 16-year-old — James and Harry had gotten home to the Potter Mansion that year, they had so much to talk about with their parents. Harry vaguely noticed that James gushed lovingly about Sirius and the antics they get up too. (James also privately told Harry that when Sirius would have nightmares about his family, he'd crawl into James' bed and that's the only way he'd sleep a full night)

What Harry learnt, though, was he never actually understood just how close James and Sirius had gotten in the five years they'd known each other.

It was a rather stormy night when it happened, and Harry had been sat in the sitting room with James because he'd been frightened by the storm. The house was almost silent, with their parents being asleep and the two brothers playing James' muggle The Cure album he'd gotten from Remus last year.

A frantic banging on the front door made them jump. Harry spared a glance at the clock — 12:45am — then looked at James worriedly. "Do we answer it?"

"Can do." James shrugged, his usual blasé attitude about danger coming in. "Grab your wand, though. And stay behind me at all times."

Harry nodded, pulling out his wand and following his older brother — and, admittedly, his idol — to the door.

Harry stood aside, out of the view of the possible intruder but still able to see, as James opened the front door, and was surprised to see a battered, red eyed, sopping wet Sirius Black barely standing up at the front door.

"Hey, Jamie." Sirius greeted, usual perfect drawl cracking with tears. "C-Can I come in?"

"Pads?" James croaked, taking in his best friend in shock. "Yes! Of course!"

Sirius smiles weakly, stumbling inside along with a duffel bag and his broom, before promptly falling onto the floor.

"Harry, you can come out. It's safe!" James called, leaning over the sofa to grab the discarded blanket they'd used earlier to throw it over his best fiend. "Go make Sirius a cup of tea, yeah? And don't wake Mum and Dad."

Harry nodded, giving Sirius a gentle smile before disappearing into the kitchen, still vaguely listening in on their conversation.

"I-I did it, Jamie." Harry heard Sirius cry. "I ran away. Walburga, she didn't like that. Hence all the blood and bruises. Possible broken nose. Can't get up off the floor, either, Jamie. The bitch whacked at the back of my knees."

Harry's heart clenched at the sound of this strong, suave boy breakdown infront of his brother. The only person he's comfortable with.

"It's a good thing you got away, Si. You can't be around someone like that hag. You can stay here for as long as you need." James offered his best friend.

"Prongs," Sirius sighed, heartbroken. "You should've seen the look on Reggie's face when I left. I can't believe I've left him with her."

He was crying now.

"Hey, hey, don't cry. Reg is welcome here anytime, too. God knows we've got the space." James soothed him.

Harry thought this was a good time to bring the tea. He came out the kitchen, knowing that Sirius took his tea with milk but no sugar and handed it too the shaken boy who sat in a broken heap on the floor.

"I'll go run you a bath and make you up a bed." Harry offered, giving Sirius the tea and showing him a considerate smile.

"Thanks so much, Prongslet. You lot are the best." Sirius smiled gratefully, before leaning his head on James' shoulder and closing his eyes. Harry knew he was hiding his tears from him.

After running a bath, filled with salts and bubbles, and setting up a room for Sirius, and casting multiple heating charms throughout the room, Harry went straight to bed. He was no longer worried about the storm, he was just exhausted.

And when he went downstairs the next morning for breakfast, he sticks his head into James' room to make sure he got to bed. He wasn't too surprised to see that Sirius was asleep on top of his brother, the two boys tangled up lovingly.

Harry learnt that day, that his brother cared more for Sirius than he'd ever thought. And that's really saying something, because Harry knows he had never seen a tighter friendship.

* * *

 

**_ 0.4  _ **

Harry came bouncing down the stairs on 5th June 1978, the day of his maybe-boyfriend's 14th birthday, and almost a month before his own.

That morning, Harry was desperately craving the scones he knew had been cooked, and nothing would stand in his way.

Until he got into the kitchen.

Sirius Black — the now permanent resident of the Potter household — was pressed up against the kitchen island with his long dark hair up in a bun and his one hand on someone's hip lazily.

That someone was none other than James Potter. Naturally atrocious hair messed up further by the other hand roaming his hair, arms around Sirius' neck and thigh between his legs.

They stood in the middle of the kitchen, snogging like their life depended on it. It was really off-putting for someone as hungry as Harry.

"Oi, sod off. You're blocking the scones." He groaned, smiling in spite of himself as the two 18-year-olds jumped apart.

"Morning, Prongslet." Sirius grinned, picking up his preciously discarded coffee mug and wrapping an arm around James' waist lovingly.

Harry just grunted, picking out a scone and spreading jam and cream onto it. "You're just glad I'm not Mum or Dad. They would've made you scrub that table after you defiled it so generously."

"Can't argue with that." James laughed in agreement. "Listen, though, we can expl-"

"I don't wanna know. What's that muggle saying? Ignorance is bliss?" Harry sighed, munching on his scone and ignoring that Sirius was groping James' bum in front of him.

"Fair enough." Sirius nodded, smiling wickedly before turning to James. "Since Harry's taken over our snogging space, what do you suggest we go shag in his bed?"

"Brilliant!" James laughed, and the two of them skipped upstairs.

Harry rolled his eyes lovingly and discovered that, yes, there was definitely more going on between them than he knew.

* * *

 

**_ 0.5 _ **

"Look at my baby boy!" Euphemia Potter cooed, tears in her eyes as she bunched James' face between her hands.

17-year-old Harry Potter laughed at his 21-year-old brother, who was edging away from their mother.

"Mum, relax." James laughed. "It's not that big a deal."

"That's why you cried like a bitch when Sirius proposed?" Harry cackled, before flinching away from the swat he received from his father.

"Sod off." James hissed, blushing. "At least I don't take it up the arse from a _Malfoy_."

"Boys!" Euphemia cries, appalled. "Harry, stop antagonizing your brother. James, focus on your wedding rather than what Harry gets up to with Draco."

Both boys blushed at that.

"Listen to your mother." Fleamont laughed fondly, eyes glistening. "And get out their before you take my foot up your arse for leaving poor Sirius at the alter."

James took a deep breath. "I look alright, yeah?" "Yes!" They all chorused.

And with that, the Prongsfoot Wedding, as they had named it, was in full swing.

The ceremony was spectacular: Harry was James' best man, and Peter was a groomsman. Regulus was Sirius'

best man, with Remus as groomsman. It was a rather small wedding, considering Regulus, Tonks and Narcissa were Sirius' only family members invited. The other attendees included Draco Malfoy, The Potters, Lily Evans, The Longbottoms and a couple other friends from The Marauder's Hogwarts Years.

The vows were quick, purely because Sirius couldn't wait to get his lips on James. When he pulled away, he uttered three words that sent the hall into a cheer. "Time for booze!"

The fifth — and final — thing Harry learnt about James Potter was that when he met Sirius Black 10 years ago on the Hogwarts Express, this was the furthest thing he expected to happen. But as Harry watched from where he danced with Draco, he knew that it was the happiest he had ever seen his brother. And Sirius Orion Black was the cause of that.


End file.
